Fast and Furious star Vin Diesel, a noted fan of singing whenever he finds an opportunity to, has paid tribute to Dolly Parton with a cover of her 1974 song, “I Will Always Love You.”
Accompanied by a picture of the late country icon, Diesel shared his take on the track, which was famously covered by Whitney Houston for the 1992 film The Bodyguard. The cover starts a cappella, with Diesel only accompanied by a reverb effect on his voice. It then slowly introduces an instrumental, and by the time the chorus hits, he harmonizes with himself before it fades out with a message reading, “Love you…”
Parton passed away on Tuesday (Aug. 25) following complications from cancer. Her death was confirmed by her nephew and head of security, Bryan Seaver, in a video shared to her Instagram.
“This video announcement is something Dolly asked of me years ago before I fully absorbed it as a future reality,” said Seaver. “By her example, we believed that anything was possible. She never saw a door she couldn't open, and the door she opened made and changed history. My family and I have shared a lifetime of beautiful memories with Dolly, but so have you.”
Her death was met with tributes from the countless musicians she had an impact on, from Eminem and Beyoncé, to Keke Palmer and Miley Cyrus.
While Vin Diesel’s tribute cover might seem out of left-field, he’s never shied away from an opportunity to sing. In 2021, he said that he’s been “dying to do a musical” his whole life, and that he would love to do a Fast and Furious musical. There’s also an amazing video of him covering Rihanna’s “Stay,” which is something I still think about often.
